We discuss two challenges for any semantics for imperatives that has them denote (strong) modal propositions: the use of imperatives to signal acquiescence (A: ‘I’d like to open the window.’ B: ‘Go ahead, open it!’) and their use in conditional conjunctions (‘Ignore the slightest detail and the experiment is flawed’). We examine how the meaning of imperatives arises compositionally, and the division of labor between semantics and pragmatics. We demonstrate remarkable cross-linguistic uniformity in these uses of the imperative. In the course of the investigation, we also explore several puzzles in the analysis of conditional conjunction. We conclude with a recommendation in favor of analyses that give imperatives a non-modal semantics paired with a modulated pragmatics.
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